Morning journal and courier., 1887-02-22
THE SHOE BOX MYSTERY.

What a Prominent chicago Paper
Says.
The Chicago Tribune of recent date has
the following:
The story regarding the developments in
| the Connecticut shoe box mystery, alleging
| that they go to show that the murdered man
was an anarchist and that he was killed in
| Chicago to prevent the exposure of an an
archist plot, is interesting and unquestiona-
| bly, correct SO far as it relates to the commits
sion of the crime in Chicago. The other
| part is not quite so probable, although posi-
BILE. Shortly after the discovery of the
| body, August s. Chicago detective
ceived commission from the Wallingford
authorities to look up the Chicago end of the
matter. The box in which the dismembered
remains were found were traced through the
peculiar lettering to the wholesale house of
L. L. Ferris & Co., Fifth avenue, between
Monroe and Adams. They had sold it in May
to Henry Eickmeier, dry goods and boot
and shoe man at No. 107 North Wells street.
| Eickmeier remembered selling the box, but
! couldn't describe the man who bought it.
| He thought he sold it late in the first week
of May. Eickmeier's place is nearly across
| the street from a hotel that used to be
| headquarters for "group" Of the anar-
chists.
There was found near the box containing
| the body a brown valise bearing a stamped
design and "Chicago' ON it's bottom. In
| this was blood-stained clothing. The valise
| was found to have been purchased of Charles
| T. Wilt No. 40 Madison street, May IL. The
man to whom it was sold was foreign
| looking person, tall, slim, round shout
| dered, with dark hair and mustache, who
| wore long light buster, brown clothes and
a dark hat. His left hand was bandaged as
| if hurt, and when questioned about it he
| said it had been hurt in drop press. He
| also bought some tarred paper. The valise
| was very big one, fourteen inches high,
| twenty-four long and twelve wide. The
| stranger paid for it and took it away with
him. He turned up May 10 at Yalesville,
| Conn, having with him the shoe box, which
was 29x17x12 and the valise. He hired
farmer to transport him ana his box to Ches-
hire, but when they had gone half
| way asked to be dropped, as he ex-
| pected the people he was looking for
would meet him there. May "a he
| appeared, without baggage, at Wallingford,
| where he registered at the Wallingford House
| as E. E. Highlander, or Saylander, Chicago,
| and after remaining day went away. The
| shoe box, with the headless and dismember-
| ed body carefully wrapped in tarred paper,
was not discovered till August 8. Examina
| ton showed the body to have been that of
young man. In pocket of the clothing in
the valise was love letter signed Myrtle"
| addressed to Dear Harry" and full of the
usual gush of eplstles of that kind.
August Is there arrived at Wallingford a
| letter addressed to the supervisors, of which
| the following is copy:
| CHICAGO, Aug 10, 1851 seed by old paper
] an account of a body found some time ago in New
Haven or near there. My brother Edwin has been
| gone since last March and thot it might be he.
| He had his arm broke and had big scar on his
/ neck. If you know anything about it please to
/ brite it. put in a stamp for a answer l am
specially, MRS. EDNA Marsh.
| General delivery, Chicago, Ill.
| A copy of this was sent to the Chicago de-
tective and reply to the writer mailed later
| SO that the postoffice might be Swallowed.
This letter from edna Marsh caused much
speculation for it was written in disguised
hand and the ungrammatical arrangement of
it was so labored as to make it
apparent that the one who
wrote it knew better. The peo-
pie who sent it were ''too fly" for the officers
and made no call for it while they watched.
Finally the letter was sent to Washington to
| the dead letter department and the "shad
| ows'' were taken away. Within an hour after
| they left young man called with written
| order for the letter, which he then could not
/ get. The object of edna Marsh" was to
| find out what the authorities knew. Several
| parties were Swallowed by the detectives and
one of them who is suspected has disappear
/ ed.
This case cannot fit Schnaubelt, the bomb
| thrower, because he was middle aged and the
| body was that of young man. Who was
| it? Spies says he has no interest in the
| bomb throwers, too many dead ones having
| been found since the HaymaIket affair.